Environmental issues

Are bryophyte communities different from higher-plant communities? Abundance relations

Article Abstract:

Ten bryophyte communities are examined for species biomass composition and identical methods were used for comparing the bryophytes and the higher-plant communities that were similar in physiognomy and in total biomass. It is concluded that the community organization between the bryophyte communities and the higher-plant communities is similar, even though biological differences exist between the two groups of organisms.

Bryophyte colonization in experimental microcosms: The role of nutrients, defoliation and vascular vegetation

Article Abstract:

A three-year multi-factorial microcosm experiment simulating fertilization, defoliation and the composition of vascular vegetation in a dry grassland succession was used to test four hypotheses concerning the establishment and survival of bryophytes in grassland vegetation. The relationship between bryophyte richness and bryophyte cover was found to follow the classical species-area richness curve.

A definition based on the analogy of the components of species diversity richness, evenness and divergence is presented. It is hoped that the definition of functional diversity and its components will aid in elucidation of the mechanisms behind diversity/ecosystem-function relationships.